1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and an apparatus for making wires of varied lengths that make up a wire harness.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The method and apparatus for making wires of desired lengths (simply referred to as specified-length wires) that make up a wire harness from continuous insulated wires are known, as disclosed in the Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 136186/1976 and Japanese Patent Examined Publication No. 12604/1987. In these conventional arts, the front end of the continuous wire is looped and the wire is paid out while its length is measured by a pinch roll. After being cut, the wire is gripped at both ends and transferred to the next process by a pallet or transfer clamp chain in a direction perpendicular to the wire axis.
The conventional arts measure the wire length by the pinch roll during wire feeding. This method necessarily makes the equipment complicated and large becaused of the high level of precision required. Another drawback is that since in making a wire of a certain length the pinch roll must be rotated the same length, the process of feeding and metering the wire takes time.